1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to food preparation. More particularly, this invention relates to apparatus for the deep-fat frying of food and specifically is directed to deep-fat frying apparatus for the frying of food in a retail environment while essentially eliminating the introduction of smoke and/or odor into the surrounding environment.
Although the present invention is applicable for deep-fat frying of numerous types of food products, it has been found to be particularly useful in the frying of frozen french-fry cut potato pieces or breaded-type snack foods in a bar or fast-food counter environment. Therefore, without limiting the applicability of the invention to "frying of frozen french-fry cut potato pieces", the invention will be described in this environment.
Deep-fat fryers or french fryers are widely used in the restaurant business for cooking various food products such as french-fried potatoes, fish and chicken. Typically, such french fryers comprise a deep tank containing a pool of cooking oil in the lower part of the tank with the cooking oil being heated by an immersed electric heating element or by gas flame. The uncooked food product is placed in a basket which is lowered into the heated oil for the desired cooking period. When the product is done, as determined by visual inspection by the restaurant employee or the sound of an audio timer, the basket should be removed from the oil by the employee and the product served to a customer or transferred to a holding station where it is kept warm by heat lamps until served.
With the advent of convenience stores, self-service stations which also handle convenience store items, etc., the need for apparatus to provide hot food products such as french-fried potatoes, fish and chicken has increased. Since there is normally only one employee for such businesses, the apparatus must be of the type which is easily and safely operated by the employee. The apparatus must also be reasonable in cost to the business proprietor, be reliable in its operation and not pollute the surrounding environment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the prior art, various machines are known for processing and dispensing small batches or individual servings of a food product, such as french-fried potatoes.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,667,373 discloses an automated coin-operated fried potato machine containing a removable multiple bin supply tray to hold a predetermined quantity of potatoes in each bin and a mechanism to feed the potatoes from successive bins to a hopper which empties into a basket positioned within a cooking bowl. The cooking bowl is pivotally mounted above a storage vessel containing hot cooking oil. An oil lift assembly supplies oil from the storage vessel to the cooking bowl for each batch of potatoes and after the potatoes are fried, the basket is pivoted to dump the fried potatoes into a serving tray fed from a supply stack. The cooking bowl is pivoted to dump the oil through a removable and replaceable filter member and into the storage vessel.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,818,820 discloses an automatic machine for preparing fried potato products which contains a food hopper for storing the potatoes to be fried. A slidably mounted ejection scoop at the bottom of the food hopper dispenses the right amount of potatoes into a basket immersed into a vat of cooking oil. At the end of a predetermined time, the basket is pivoted to drop the fried potatoes into a waiting container. The machine also contains a fan to extract the fumes via a replaceable charcoal filter unit. An automatic fire extinguisher unit is mounted near the fume outlet to extinguish the oil if it should catch fire.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,981,232 discloses a free standing fryer having a fat fryer located within the interior of a cabinet. The cabinet includes a roof section which houses a fan means for extracting air and fumes from the cabinet and forcing the same through filter means which includes charcoal. A fire extinguisher is also disclosed.
Graham (U.S. Pat. No. 971,307) discloses a deep fat fryer including a front-mounted control panel spanning the gap between two forwardly-extending arms of a generally H-shaped tubular frame which forms an opened-topped hinged lid for the fat reservoir. The H-shaped tubular frame is hinged at the rear portion thereof, opposite of the front-mounted control panel. A submersible heating element is attached to the front-mounted control panel and extends downwardly into the cooking oil. When the H-shaped tubular frame is raised upwardly, the heating element is raised out of the cooking oil and moves with the tubular frame.
The present invention as claimed is intended to provide a solution to various prior art deficiencies including the reliability problems associated with the complex automated mechanisms. Also the high initial cost of daily operation and maintenance. In addition, the unacceptable service requirements associated with the highly automated mechanisms. There is also the problem of air pollution by the odor and smoke emitted from some of the machines. Some machines also tend to allow small amounts of cooking oil to exit from the machine. Also, the relative large physical size of the automated units can limit the location of the mechanism as well as the need for an external exhaust. In some prior art devices which store the food, there is a risk of spoilage and contamination of the food. In some units, it is inconvenient and difficult to clean the parts in contact with the oil and oily foods because of the complex automated mechanisms. In addition, many machines are of a design which does not allow for fast and easy removal and replacement of parts and units.